Fast-track migrant centres in Greece and Italy 'overwhelmed'
Migrant centres in Greece and Italy meant to fast-track people seeking asylum in Europe are overwhelmed and urgently require more experts, particularly to help vulnerable children travelling alone, EU auditors have warned.
In a new report, the auditors said two more centres known as "hotspots" are needed to process migrants in Italy, and added that facilities on Greek islands where people arrive from Turkey must be improved.
In Greece, the auditors said: "There are still more migrants arriving at the hotspots than leaving, and they are seriously overcrowded."
Some children have been held in "restrictive conditions" there for more than three months.
Hans Gustaf Wessberg, an auditor responsible for the report, said: "This issue needs to be addressed as a matter of urgency."
While the hotspot system has helped manage the problem short-term, migrant arrivals are unlikely to ease soon. Mr Wessberg said: "I cannot see any end of this situation."
The hotspots in Greece and Italy are designed to process a total of about 8,000 people in a few days but are routinely dealing with 15,000-16,000 migrants.
The centres - four in Italy and five in Greece - are seen as a key part of the EU's response to the refugee emergency. They were set up in 2015 as tens of thousands of people entered Europe, many from Syria and Iraq.
The auditors note that the EU's agreement with Turkey to send migrants back there means that people are stuck on the Greek islands for longer periods while their cases are examined, turning the hotspots into de-facto camps.
The report urges the EU and its member countries to ensure that adequate shelter and protection is provided for children, including the deployment of child protection officers at every site.
More migration and asylum experts should also be deployed, and with longer contracts, so their expertise is not lost, the auditors added.
AP
